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SEVERAL artefacts from Sikh history including weapons, shields, furniture and books of Ranjit Singh’s reign in Punjab were on display at the Lahore museum.—Photo by writer

WHEN one thinks of Sikh rule in Punjab — one that spanned at least half a century — who comes to mind but their leader, the powerful Maharaja Ranjit Singh. The man who later became known as the ‘Lion King’ became the official ruler of Punjab in 1801 but Sikh rule had already begun in 1799. Even today, the man’s formidable imprint cannot be shaken off. He constituted tough resistance for the British Raj — even at 22 years of age, he was a man to reckon with as he began consolidating his empire.

Sikh history in Punjab is replete with countless conquerors and while the Maharaja’s image is mostly that of a man with a sword, it was not war mongering that the man promoted, but peace. And much of this peace was promoted by art. At the Lahore Museum recently, a sampling of the arts he patronised were on display.

At this British-built structure, which itself is an edifice of historical value, were displayed several artefacts of the Sikh Empire, almost all of them reflecting the religion. Visitors marvelled at the fading but beautiful paintings, the weapons — rusty now, but still wielding intrinsic power — coins and intricate woodwork, symbols of a lost time. The exhibition was a world of its own, taking one back to the Sikh period when their unmatchable glory exerted influence — an integral chapter in the history of Punjab. And this last fact is fitting, for Sikhism is the only religion that rose from Punjab.

Globally, Sikhism is the fifth largest religion with 23 million followers, while Sikh history is more than 500 years old. That has been enough time for Sikhs to have developed unique expressions for art and culture, influenced heavily by their faith but also by other traditions, including Hindu and Mughal styles of art and architecture. Since Sikhism is an indigenous Punjabi faith, its art too is synonymous with that of the Punjab region. It was under the Sikh Empire that a uniquely Sikh form of expression was created. For his part, the Maharajah patronised the building of forts, palaces, bungalows and havelis (opulent residences), and colleges. In these were fitted archetypes including jharokas with intricate woodwork; domes featured often in their buildings and not one is without decoration such as inlay, carvings, and paintings.

The Lahore Museum has a rich collection of Sikh artefacts. There are gold, silver and copper coins, as well as Ranjit Singh’s gold medals, miniatures including portraits of Sikh spiritual and political figures, weapons, some clothing of the nobility, elegant furniture from the darbar (royal court), royal decrees and Sikh holy books. Those associated with this exhibition are rightfully proud.

“This is the first time that the museum has displayed what points to a unique Sikh identity,” said Iffat Azeem, research officer of the Lahore Museum. “Our most important relics are Ranjit’s gold medals that were minted in France. There are also some original edicts by Ranjit.”

“At the time Ranjit Singh took over Punjab, there had been a lot of chaos and anarchy,” said historian and writer Mushtaq Sufi, also one of the visitors. “In fact, it was the Lahoris themselves who invited the leader to conquer Lahore and subsequently Punjab. When Ranjit’s army reached Lahore, all the prominent citizens, including Mian Mohkam Din who personally opened the Lohari Gate for the army, presented to him the keys of the city.” Today, this meeting place is marked by the Punjab Public Library.

“In those days, miniature paintings depicted the apparel of the Central Asian states and that of the Persians,” said Sufi. “But soon, local culture began seeping into such artwork. Some Sikh and European artists also started visiting Ranjit’s darbar and so there was also a European influence.”

Since Ranjit Singh brought peace to Punjab through promoting art and culture, the king’s popularity grew.

A former director of Lahore Museum, Dr Saif-ur-Rehman Dar, termed the exhibition a good effort. Generally, it was felt that while the effort behind the exhibition was laudable, it was unfortunate that Sikhs from other countries could not be part of it. Dr Dar said that it could have been even better if the display had been put up during the Baisakhi festival when Sikhs make their way to Punjab for pilgrimage. “There is great importance to such an exhibition, with its display of letters and documents of the Sikh period,” he said, adding that visitors should have also had a copy of the list of relics on display.

For the museum’s additional director, Naushaba Anjum, this was not just an exhibition. “We are trying to send the Sikh community a message of solidarity,” she said of her brainchild. “And at the same time, it is not limited to being a message of love and peace. The exhibition raised a lot of awareness among the public about Sikh culture and identity.”

Strange to notice there is no enthusiasm from the people of Pakistan towards this articl on very recent history and the
" The Lion King of Punjab "

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SAM

May 05, 2017 11:18am

Any good words about Pakistani Lions.

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DDD

May 05, 2017 12:05pm

Congrats to all Pakistanis. Be proud of your history ;)

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Logitech

May 05, 2017 12:14pm

When Sikh tyranny ended in Punjab, Muslims led by Quaid-e-Azam celebrated Day of Deliverance. We know our history.

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Sympathiser

May 05, 2017 12:15pm

Good article by Dawn as usual...

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furykk

May 05, 2017 12:33pm

rajit singh died in his conquest of afganistan

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Ayandas

May 05, 2017 12:34pm

Good dawn very good.we love the Sikh gurus.they are priceless.

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Ranjit Haripur

May 05, 2017 12:53pm

Unknown to many, it was the Punjabi Muslim Sardars who were the mainstays of Sikhism during its formative years. The first follower of Gur Nanak was his close Muslim companion Mardana. The teachings and words of Baba Farid and Baba Kabir are found in the Sikh holy scriptures. Pir Mian Mir of lahore laid the foundation stone of the Golden temple. Perhaps one of the most fascinating story of early Sikh history was when Baba Badr uddin who was also known as Pir Buddhu Shah fought alongside Gur Gobind and sacrificed his sons in battle. So moved was the last Sikh Guru that he removed his turban and cut it in half and gave it to Baba Badr uddin. That Half Turban is still kept by the descendants of Baba Badr uddin in Lahore today.

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Mirza

May 05, 2017 02:12pm

Pakistan feel much closer to sikhs

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Sikander

May 05, 2017 03:01pm

Respect for the magnificent emperor of punjab. Great effort by lahore museum

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Satire

May 05, 2017 03:04pm

@Logitech I know your comment is a Satire.

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MANJEET

May 05, 2017 03:16pm

WHY DO WE FIGHT

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Amit

May 05, 2017 03:19pm

@Logitech The Sikh empire was the last empire that fell to the British raj, after which followed years of servitude under the British. It was only in 1947 when 2 countries emerged independent from the Britis.. I strongly recommend you study your history again. Seems to be pretty rusty..
Oh and by the way, if you read the above article carefully " while the Maharaja’s image is mostly that of a man with a sword, it was not war mongering that the man promoted, but peace." I wonder where Sikh tyranny comes from. As advised earlier.. relearn your history and that too from credible sources.

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Adil Jadoon

May 05, 2017 03:30pm

Nice article...wish I can visit!

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khaled

May 05, 2017 03:38pm

No doubt he was the lion of Punjab, he was the only son of the soil who ruled the undivided Punjab for such long time, he not only kept the British at bay but also the plunders who invaded the plains from the north.

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Mahesh Kumar

May 05, 2017 03:46pm

Maharaha Ranjit Singh was one of the greatest emperors to have come from Sub continent. we Indians are proud of him. He fought so hard for his motherland. May Lord bless him. I am hindu but sat sat Guru tera hi asra. wahe Guru ki fatah!

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common & immaterial

May 05, 2017 03:48pm

@Amit Little correction
last to fall was Maratha empire & that too not with direct wars. It was Nana fadanvis who signed an agreement granting control to british.
Distrust between tipu sultan & nana fadanvis made things easy for british

@INSHAF-E-RAFTA Your anti-Muslim comments does not fit it being here or anywhere else. Perhaps it did not enter your mind that there was Pashtun king of NWFP that played a considerable role against the Sikhs? He never got captured by them. Also, just because some Muslim rulers were defeated by Ranjit Singh does not make them cowards

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harry

May 05, 2017 04:08pm

Sikhs are the only people who offer free food for the hungry all over the world. They never ask the visitors what is or her religion is. Spirit of humanity.

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Iftikhar Husain

May 05, 2017 04:19pm

Good effort by government of Pakistan.

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Muhamad

May 05, 2017 04:20pm

@Amit ranjit Singh was a great ruler but this is also a established and a proven fact that during the Sikh empire many mosques in Lahore were converted to stables for horses or as great n powder and weapons depot this includes the historic badshahi mosque which got renovated after british took over Punjab as well as others like dai anga mosque . I am not bashing him but we south Asians need to accept the positives and negatives of all our rulers be it Sikhs or Muslims or anyone else. But unfortunately we all have taken sides on the basis of religion or ancestry. I don't understand why many Indians consider Mughals as foreign invaders as the time made India their home . No doubt they had their tyrannical side but they also had their good side too. Why consider ranjit Singh as son of the soil while Akbar and shah jehan as outsiders ?

@Mirza that is true, but we also love Hindus, millions still live with us in Sindh come and see it. Om Shanti Om as none greater than Shanti

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FROM

May 05, 2017 04:30pm

Thank you Dawn for an interesting article as usual, the writer is right in re-looking at the History of Ranjeet Singh (The Lion of Punjab). However for ever Lion, there are those who are its pray, in this regard I feel that whole swaths of Punjab were raised or burned to the ground. For me, there is seldom a home in villages on the banks of river Indus, that does not have a grave of people killed by Sikhs.
But that is history, recently a Sikh friend from overseas visited the area and was really impressed by the Sikh history in Pakistan. In the long term I would request the Government of Pakistan improve and facilities so that my Sikh friends can visit the important places in Sikh religion.

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SYED H

May 05, 2017 04:32pm

The Sikh Empire is not remotely comparable to the preceding Persianate Turkic ones like the Mughals; it was much smaller in scale (the Greater Punjab region essentially), and because it was created by a set of militias that arose out of a raid-and-loot dynamic, it lacked any institutional foundations of note, and was very transient (the empire collapsed soon after Ranjit Singh's death).

It is not remembered well at all by Muslim Punjabis (most Punjabis). The Badshahi Mosque was converted into stables, and there was wilful desecration of Mughal monuments; the marble often being used to build Sikh structures. The treatment of Muslims was such that when the British moved in, the Sikhs found in West Punjab a hostile population giving little support. In Lahore, Muslim notables were forcibly dispossessed, with their lands given to Sikhs and Hindus, such that in 1947, despite being Muslim majority for centuries, land and business was overwhelmingly in non-Muslim hands, unlike before 1800.

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Rana

May 05, 2017 04:49pm

@Logitech "When Sikh tyranny ended in Punjab, Muslims led by Quaid-e-Azam celebrated Day of Deliverance. We know our history"
If you are serious then you know nothing about our history. Sikh rule ended in 1849 and Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah was born in 1876. From 1849 to 1947, Britishers ruled Punjab.

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Rkhan

May 05, 2017 04:56pm

Good to know about Raja Ranjit Singh bros...... now that emperors kings rajahs and maharajahs along their belongings are decorative piece in our museums good thing but heredity and traces of their majesty Magnificence and elegance can be seen even today in Pakistan like lords of Sindh and Punjab and war lords of ... you know better:)

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FOG

May 05, 2017 04:57pm

@B.Ally Respectfully and politely If I may correct you, Sikh heritage has nothing to do with Muslim Punjabi.We don't even speak the same language.

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ashish

May 05, 2017 05:15pm

@common & immaterial Amit is correct please check your facts.The Marathas complete independence was lost after the third anglo-maratha war of 1817-1818 whereas the sikh empire was annexed after the second anglo sikh war in 1849.

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ASB

May 05, 2017 05:20pm

@Muhamad Love your thought. Ranjit Singh though secular and against forced conversion as per recorded history also converted mosques for different uses. Likewise, the Mughals were Indian/sub-continental kings although their origin can be traced to Central Asia. Many were secular, some notable ones were bigoted. But all were products of their time. What they did is incongruous with the present thoughts but they were what they were. Hope there is a more objective assessment of our collective past so that we understand our sub-continent better.

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ashish

May 05, 2017 05:20pm

@Muhamad Please check your facts. Maharaja Ranjit singh ordered the renovation of the badshai mosque as the very first of his initiatives after capturing Lahore(on invitation from the local Muslims)

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AHAQ

May 05, 2017 05:22pm

Reign of terror

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Om Shanti Shalom Salam(Marifat is Peace)

May 05, 2017 05:45pm

Very good article which help build co-existence and the article praising the king of Sikh religion and his good governance, let such article about co-existence, friendship and peace between different religions, sects, ethnicities etc. be published by Dawn.

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MUHAMMAD

May 05, 2017 06:06pm

@ashish please check ur facts. Following is an excerpt from Wikipedia:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lahore#Sikh_era

"the Sikh rulers plundered most of the Lahore's most precious Mughal monuments, and stripped the white marble from several monuments to send to different parts of the Sikh Empire. Ranjit Singh's army also desecrated the most of the important Mughal mosques in Lahore and some were confiscated including the Abdullah Khan Masjid. The Badshahi Mosque was also confiscated and converted it into an ammunition depot and a stable for Ranjit Singh's horses. The Golden Mosque in the Walled City of Lahore was also converted to a gurdwara for a period of time, while the Mosque of Mariyam Zamani Begum was repurposed into a gunpowder factory. "
I once again state that I am not denying his qualities as a ruler and warrior (he also refurbished some mughal buildings of lahore) but I want to highlight the prejudices we south Asians have on the basis of ethnicity& religion for eachother.

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MUHAMMAD

May 05, 2017 06:13pm

@ASB they did all this for power and to keep opposition in check. Brutality of Mughals towards Sikh gurus had more to do with the fear that their power in Punjab would decline. Same was Aurangzeb's atrocracies towards non muslims. He did all this maybe because marathas and others were rising against him so he though the best thing to do is to crush the non muslims in general. Ranjit singh and other rulers (though tolerant towards muslims to an extent) did not give an equal liberty to them compared to their Sikh and hindu counterparts again because of power. All this has been a power game from day one but unfortunately we south Asians are not able to understand.

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ASIf kahsmiri

May 05, 2017 06:22pm

Ranjit Singh - Proud of you

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Modi

May 05, 2017 06:26pm

Thanks Dawn for publishing this.
Sad to see no such coverage in Indian media :(

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Sab se pehle pakistan

May 05, 2017 06:38pm

True. Panjabis has lots of respect for their sikh brothers and sisters

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Abraham haque

May 05, 2017 06:47pm

@MUHAMMAD thank you

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Freund

May 05, 2017 07:07pm

Sad that very few Sikhs left in Pakistan's Punjab region.

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MUHAMMAD

May 05, 2017 07:18pm

@Freund , true. Unfortunately the entire Punjab region was up in flames in 1947 resulting in more or less complete population transfers of hindus muslims and Sikhs between pak Punjab and ind Punjab and Haryana due to which we find very few Sikhs here . But there are still sizeable Sikhs in Baluchistan and KPK infact I remember going to a market in Peshawar in 2010 with mostly Sikh shop owners.

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Malik W

May 05, 2017 07:18pm

@INSHAF-E-RAFTA When someone is respecting you, be gracious.

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Malik W

May 05, 2017 07:20pm

The proper name of Sikh Religion is Khalsa, not Sikhism.

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Arjun, India

May 05, 2017 07:23pm

a great king

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Bal Gupta

May 05, 2017 07:26pm

These days, a Hindi/Panjabi TV series "Maharaja Ranjit Singh" is being shown on Indian TV LifeOK. His kingdom included majority of Pakistan (Pakistani Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunva and Pakistani Administered Kashmir). One of his generals who captured Pakhtunwa was Mahan Singh Bali, a Sikh from Mirpur, PAK. (Ref . Forgotten Atrocities: Memoirs of a Survivor of the 1947 Partition of Mirpur)

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karachi wally

May 05, 2017 07:31pm

Congratulation Dawn on bringing this to notice to all. We need to celebrate our diversity and recognize efforts from all whoever has made contributions to our history, regardless of their faith, etc.

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Optimist

May 05, 2017 07:31pm

@Muhamad good comments sir and fully agree with you. We need to look at history objectively.

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Saad Bin Razzaq

May 05, 2017 07:34pm

I still see that in Pakistan we praise non-Muslim heroes and even have them in our history books unlike India who always paint Muslim heroes as villains.

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sample

May 05, 2017 07:34pm

@Sab se pehle pakistan ... Which is very good. Can Sikh become a prime minister of pakistan like in india??

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Anurag Gautam

May 05, 2017 07:44pm

Maharaja Ranjit Singh and Tipu Sultan of Mysore i like the most in indian history because of their scientific approach,which was much much ahead from other rulers of same era. Maharaja Ranjit Singh a true son of soil.

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Anurag Gautam

May 05, 2017 08:02pm

I Request my all Pakistani brothers to have a look at Guru Granth Sahib, a wonderful wonderful book to read.

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AK

May 05, 2017 09:19pm

A beautiful article by Dawn. Maharaja Ranjit Singh was an icon.

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Amarjit Gill

May 05, 2017 10:00pm

Thanks, Dawn.Appreciate bringing out this article about Maharaja Ranjit Singh.Hope such efforts will bring the people of two Punjab to have better understanding and more cooperation

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IFTIKHAR KHAN

May 05, 2017 10:31pm

Whenever a list of ten most prominent Punjabis will be compiled by any scholar with integrity, the name of Maharaja Ranjit Singh would be among top three. In my book, he has to compete with the literary and possibly fictional character of Heer for top spot.

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sky

May 05, 2017 10:34pm

Though geography wise Ranjit Singh belonged to this land, post partition his legacy has moved to other side. Will be interesting to know whether Pakistani history books discusses about him, and in what dimension.

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Jash

May 05, 2017 11:29pm

@Muhamad very well said, bro.

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Solah aanne

May 05, 2017 11:55pm

@Muhamad good views.

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Avtar

May 06, 2017 12:24am

Excellent initiative! The fakir museum has interesting objects from the era. A proud moment for all Punjabis.

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PROUDLY AMERICAN

May 06, 2017 01:45am

Sher Punjab indeed. He is very popular on both side of Punjab.

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yussouf m mir

May 06, 2017 02:42am

ranjit singh was a tyrant/anti muslim/mosuqes were converted iknto stables/tyrant/fanatic

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Sachin

May 06, 2017 03:45am

Indians love Sikhism and even the nonSikhs are very proud of Sikh history and Sikh empire. Most Indians visit gurudwaras and bow down in worship and respect to Granthsahib and most Hindu temples in West have pictures of gurus whom Hindus fold hands and bow down to. Wish all humanity would worship all religions equally then there will no conflict.

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Surinder Gill

May 06, 2017 04:13am

@furykk IT was Hari Singh Nalwa who died at Jamrod and not Ranjit Singh. Mahraja died on June 27, 1839 at Lahore due to age and sickness.

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Bilal pardesi

May 06, 2017 04:54am

Great article !

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akilesh

May 06, 2017 05:25am

@Saad Bin Razzaq you are wrong we still respect musliom hero's like king Akber, Prince Dara sikoh , Sufi like raheem, Raskhan, kabeer.they are like jem in India . currently ex president Dr Apj kalam is our hero's .

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Anu ludhianvi

May 06, 2017 05:46am

Wish I could come and see the exhibition!

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TQ

May 06, 2017 06:54am

@Ranjit Haripur what a great story of friendship and love. These are the stories which should be taught in schools.

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Srinivas A

May 06, 2017 08:00am

Nice to see an article on Sikh in Pak media

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Aroon

May 06, 2017 02:12pm

@Saad Bin Razzaq In her text books we have "Akbar the great" "Tippu Sultan lion of Mysore" "Shah Jahan". President Abdul Kalam.....and many many more....So, please don't judge before doing your homework.

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Aroon

May 06, 2017 02:12pm

@Saad Bin Razzaq In her text books we have "Akbar the great" "Tippu Sultan lion of Mysore" "Shah Jahan". President Abdul Kalam.....and many many more....So, please don't judge before doing your homework.

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an observer

May 06, 2017 03:49pm

@SAM Any good words about Pakistani Lions.

We have our own Shere-e-Punjab, the great glorious leader, our PM.

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Ayub

May 06, 2017 07:19pm

We are proud of Ranjit Singh, the son of the soil.

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N H RANA

May 06, 2017 07:23pm

@Muhamad -explained briefly thus positively.

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Will buford

May 07, 2017 02:55am

@Adil Jadoon : Oh, ANOTHER celebrity seeker!

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Will buford

May 07, 2017 03:04am

@SYED H : Mutability is the only constant in all existence. What rises must fall.
Please read "The Rise and Fall of Nations"---and by extension, the rise and fall of all ideologies that do not adapt to the times.